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QC :
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Quan Canh, Vietnamese equivalent of American Military Police;
see NPFF, NPSS, WHITE MICE, POLICE.
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Q-COURSE :
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general term, Qualification course, for any training program that
results in either a proficiency rating, or a modified Military
Occupational Specialty (MOS), or both; proficiency ratings are
denoted by skill badges (TRASH) or qualification tabs (Q-TAB),
and can alter the basic MOS by the addition of a numeric prefix
or a letter suffix (eg: 3-prefix/S-suffix = SF). Since the
Vietnam-era, when a one-week Pre-Recondo course was a
prerequisite for the three-week MACV Recondo School, all of the
Q-COURSEs have instituted a Pre-Q (and in some cases, a Pre-Pre-Q
course) to reduce attrition, making the Q-COURSEs more cost
effective. Q-COURSEs range in length from two weeks for AIR
ASSAULT and JUMPMASTER, to three weeks for AIRBORNE and RECONDO,
JUNGLE EXPERT and SAPPER, to nine weeks for SCOUT/SNIPER and
RANGER, to more than a year for PILOT and SPECIAL FORCES
training. See MOS, PMOS, POI, ASI, SQI, SFQC, CROSS-TRAINING,
OJT, STRIKER, RETREAD, RATING, BILLET, CHARM SCHOOL, COC, ACTA,
RECONDO, SERE, BOLO BADGE, Q-TAB, TRIPLE CANOPY, EOD, UDT, SCUBA,
SEAL, DIVER, DOLPHIN, WATER WINGS, BIRDMAN, JET JOCKEY, PROP
JOCKEY, ROTOR HEAD, WINGS, OVAL, FLASH, RIGGER, POWER WALL, PRO
PAY.
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QM :
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quartermaster, S-4/G-4/J-4 (v: J-CODES); SUPPLY, LOGISTICS,
armory, MOTOR POOL, DUMP, DEPOT, PRE-POS. Also, in NavSpeak, an
assistant navigator; compare COXSWAIN.
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QRF :
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Quick Reaction Force, also called "Quick Reaction Team"; see RRF.
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QRT :
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Quick Reaction Team, also called "Quick Reaction Force"; see RRF,
RT.
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Q-SHIP :
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a WARSHIP camouflaged as a noncombatant vessel with its armament
and other fighting equipment hidden, arranged with special
provisions for quickly unmasking its weapons; also called "decoy
ship". See DECOY, CAMO, DECEPTION.
[nb: the Geneva Convention specifically prohibits entrapment,
such as an ambush during a truce]
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Q-TAB :
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a Qualification-TAB denoting individual proficiency, that is
authorized for wear, like any other personal award, as a shoulder
sleeve insignia (SSI) regardless of later assignment. Unlike
pocket badges, which are limited and/or restricted, all Q-TABs
may be worn simultaneously above the current unit PATCH in the
following order: President's 100, SPECIAL FORCES, RANGER, SAPPER.
Also called "Q-arc" or "qual", and should not be confused with
the AIRBORNE arc appended to designated unit shoulder PATCHes.
See TRIPLE CANOPY, BOLO BADGE, TRASH, WINGS, Q-COURSE, SFQC,
GONG, FRUIT SALAD, GREEN TAB, POWER WALL, BRAGGING RIGHTS,
SCROLL, TAB.
[nb: an insignia emblematic of the honors and lineage of a
military organization, unlike familial "coats of arms", may be
individually enhanced but not personally heritable; v: Heraldry]
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QTRS :
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abbreviation for QuarTeRS, designating both living area (eg:
BILLET, BERTH, RACK, BARRACK, HAMMOCK, FART SACK, HOSPITAL
CORNER, SAFE HOUSE, GUARDHOUSE, BUTLER BUILDING, SEA HUT,
QUONSET HUT, HUTMENT, TEAMHOUSE, HOOCH, LONG HOUSE, SHEBANG,
TENT, VILLE, BOQ, NOB HILL, GOQ, VOQ, OFFICER'S COUNTRY,
WARDROOM, SUDS ROW, PRIME RIBS, etc) and duty area (eg: CQ, GQ,
FIRE QUARTERS, COLLISION QUARTERS, ON STATION, STAND-TO, etc);
the singular form 'quarter' (QTR) is rarely used. See BAQ.
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QUAD 50 :
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A WWII-era antiaircraft weapon used in Vietnam as an
anti-personnel weapon; also spelled "quad-fifty", "quad .50",
"quad-50s". Consisting of four electric solenoid firing M-2 .50
caliber machineguns, mounted in a movable SPONSON as used for
fire base and convoy security; designated M-55. See GUN TRUCK,
HEAVY MG, MG.
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QUAGMIRE :
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a situation from which extrication is very difficult, being a
metaphor for the VIETNAM WAR, from its existence as a mire or bog
that yields only to ensnare; see DECENT INTERVAL, DOMINO THEORY,
APOCALYPSE, TAR BABY, WHITE ELEPHANT, BELL THE CAT, BITTER END,
FOGGY BOTTOM.
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QUANGO :
-
a semi-independent agency or bureau; acronym derived from
QUasi Autonomous National Governmental Organization; compare NGO,
GOCO, OGA, BELTWAY BANDIT.
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QUARTERDECK :
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that part of a vessel's weather DECK running from midship to the
STERN or POOP DECK, may have bulwarks. Compare FANTAIL,
FORECASTLE.
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QUARTERDECK FACE :
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the remote and aloof visage adopted by Navy officers to indicate
their formal demeanor as being responsible for the enforcement of
all regulations. At the conclusion of shipboard fetes or high
jinks or other informalities, the ship's officers would "ship a
QUARTERDECK FACE again" as a signal that breaches or infractions
would no longer be countenanced, and to denote a resumption of
normal routine and traditional protocol. Compare FLINT FACE,
FACE.
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QUEEN FOR A YEAR :
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catch-phrase for any female MIL-PERS stationed overseas, where
the normal sex ratio of 10 or 15 women to 85 or 90 males is
drastically reduced (sometimes by half) for the term of her tour
of duty; where the normal attention paid to any woman by every
man, while mostly innocent or even protective, becomes onerous or
oppressive. The non-fraternization policy and travel restrictions
typical of a garrisoned lifestyle in a foreign country usually
increases her sense of isolation and victimization because she
has no privacy, no outlets for frustration, and few opportunities
for relaxation. Most women respond to this situation by becoming
imperious or supercilious, a prima donna, hence the attribution
that's been used since the VIETNAM WAR; as derived from "Queen
for a Day", the radio and TV prize giveaway program. See SKIRT,
GI JANE, ANGEL.
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QUICK OR DEAD :
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the condition of troops maneuvering under fire; derived from
"judge the quick and the dead" (2 Timothy 4:1), meaning 'the
living and the dead'.
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QUICK TIME :
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the command to return the formation to regular march tempo, set
at the rate of 120 steps per minute. Compare DOUBLE TIME, FUNERAL
PACE; see CADENCE, PARADE.
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QUONSET HUT :
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a standardized and prefabricated semicylindrical shelter with
wooden end-walls, suitable for any weather or region; as
developed at Quonset Point Naval Base, Rhode Island. A similarly
styled hut of tunnel-shaped corrugated iron with a cement floor,
called a "Nissen Hut" after its inventor Lt.Col. Peter Norman
Nissen, was used during both World Wars. See BUTLER BUILDING,
HANGAR, SEA HUT, BILLET, HUTMENT.
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